TKS Sydney. car-cut-polish

I used 1500 wet/dry from Cdn Tire to cut the finish back to the wood after every 4 thin coats until the pores were filled.

This paper felt more like an 800 or 900 than 1500, but that is what they called it, and it cut, rather than heat up the oil and burnish it, like crocus cloth does/did.

The package of crocus cloth I have is marked 800 grit, but of course crocus is for polishing steel, not cutting an oil finish. I was surprised how well the wet/dry 1500 cut the hardened finish back to the wood.

Due to the large pores of the soft Claro that Browning used for the stock, it took 55 coats to fill them. I never did use a slurry as I wanted clear finish in the pores with no black areas, just clear finish. It worked, a polished shine that looked a foot deep, but only had 3 coats on top of the wood's surface, like a mirror, almost.

The red-polish brought up the shine so nicely - it was absolutely beautiful & looked brand new, but was oil, not plastic or epoxy.

That stock was a one-off. I do not finish like that any more as it took almost 6 months.